Physio-Individuality

Physio-individuality
- n
1. The unique activity requirements each of our bodies need for optimal health.

 

Physio-individuality acknowledges, while all of our bodies are made of muscle, bone, skin and tissue, the optimal exercise for each of us is different. Physio-individuality gives each person permission to exercise for their own bodies, needs and lifestyle. The types, amounts and duration of exercise our bodies will thrive on is unique and is related to a host of variables not often considered including the seasons, our daily mood, the weather, other demands on our time and our sleep patterns. Simply put the kinds of exercise each person needs is different.

Part of the challenge (and opportunity) to help Americans get more exercise is helping them understand what is best for their own body and life. A balanced exercise regime includes a combination of cardio, strength training, flexibility and core over a week's time.  How much of each, how intense or strenous, and the durations will change. There is no one-size fits all exercise program that will work for everyone.

An exercise program that embraces the concept of physio-individuality must include four things:

• Education
• Access
• Goal Setting
• Evaluation

In short, we need to teach each person about their bodies and how to exercise. We need to give them affordable and easy access to experiment with different types, intensity and durations of exercise. We need to help them set proactive and realistic goals (that go beyond their physical shape). And we need to help them learn from their experience, gather feedback, adapt their approach and evaluate their success.

Helping people get more exercise is a critical component of their improved health and longevity. And, it has the added benefit of improving our economy and saving our healthcare system.

Many thanks to Joshua Rosenthal of the Institute for Integration Nutrition who coined the term "bio-indiviudality" and was my inspiration to expand the concept to exercise and create the term "physio-individuality." Joshua - I am ever grateful for being your student.

Body Mass Index (BMI)

There are some fitness gurus who don't think BMI is a good measure of fitness. It does have some disadvantages (particularly for big, muscular men) but generally speaking it is a piece of information to know in your pursuit of wellness. Here is a handy calculator from Healthy Widgets to find out your personal BMI:

BMI Calculator
Height:	45678 feet  01234567891011 inch(es)
Weight:	8081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400  pounds

And here is a handy table to know what your results mean:

Your BMI is
BMI	Weight Status
Below 18.5	Underweight
18.5 - 24.9	Normal
25.0 - 29.9	Overweight
30.0 and above	Obese

BMI	Weight Status
Below 18.5	Underweight
18.5 - 24.9	Normal
25.0 - 29.9	Overweight
30.0 and above	Obese

As you journey toward better health and wellness for life keep track of your BMI and body fat data. A check in once or twice per month is a good interval and keep a diary so you'll know how much healthier you're getting over time. 

Body Fat Tool

The best way to know where you are going is to know where you are coming from. If you are considering a new wellness program, knowing your body fat percentage is a great piece of data. Calculating body fat can be done by a personal trainer, on a fancy scale (though they are unreliable) or through other high-tech tools available at some gyms and medical facilities.

And then there is this little tool published by Mike Moorehead of Healthy Widgets. It seems to be pretty accurate and is a quick and easy way to get an idea of where you are. A big thanks to Mike for making this great little tool!

Body Fat Calculator
Height:	4 feet 4 inches4 feet 5 inches4 feet 6 inches4 feet 7 inches4 feet 8 inches4 feet 9 inches4 feet 10 inches4 feet 11 inches5 feet 0 inches5 feet 1 inches5 feet 2 inches5 feet 3 inches 5 feet 4 inches5 feet 5 inches5 feet 6 inches5 feet 7 inches5 feet 8 inches5 feet 9 inches5 feet 10 inches5 feet 11 inches6 feet 0 inches6 feet 1 inches6 feet 2 inches6 feet 3 inches6 feet 4 inches6 feet 5 inches6 feet 6 inches6 feet 7 inches6 feet 8 inches6 feet 9 inches6 feet 10 inches6 feet 11 inches7 feet 0 inches7 feet 1 inches 7 feet 2 inches7 feet 3 inches7 feet 4 inches
Neck:	10 inches11 inches12 inches13 inches14 inches15 inches16 inches17 inches18 inches19 inches20 inches21 inches22 inches23 inches24 inches 25 inches26 inches
Waist:	20 inches21 inches22 inches23 inches24 inches25 inches26 inches27 inches28 inches29 inches30 inches31 inches32 inches33 inches34 inches35 inches36 inches 37 inches38 inches39 inches40 inches41 inches42 inches43 inches44 inches45 inches
Hip:	24 inches25 inches26 inches27 inches28 inches29 inches30 inches31 inches32 inches33 inches 34 inches35 inches36 inches37 inches38 inches39 inches40 inches41 inches42 inches43 inches44 inches45 inches46 inches47 inches48 inches49 inches50 inches
Gender:	FemaleMale

Once you have your number, use the table below to see if you have room for improvement. 

Female	Male	Classification
10-12%	2-4%	Essential Fat
14-20%	6-13%	Athletes
21-24%	14-17%	Fitness
25-31%	18-25%	Acceptable
31%+	25%+	Obese

Your Body Fat is
Female	Male	Classification
10-12%	2-4%	Essential Fat
14-20%	6-13%	Athletes
21-24%	14-17%	Fitness
25-31%	18-25%	Acceptable
31%+	25%+	Obese

Knowing vs. Doing

How many adults in the US have no leisure-time physical activity? 25.4%

How many adults in the US are overweight? 34%

How many people know exercise can lead to weight loss? Most everyone.

How many people, if overweight, want to lose weight? Most all. 

So why aren't people doing what they know will make them lose weight, get more healthy and feel better?

People have lots of excuses. The most common of which is not enough time to exercise. With 24 hours in a day it seems there should be enough time to get a little exercise. The CDC recommends at least 150 minutes of exercise each week which is about 21 minutes a day. So how do we spend our time? According to this data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics the average American spends 5 hours a day doing leisure activities. Five hours a day! If we were exercising for even 1/2 of that 5 hours, we wouldn't have an obesity problem. 

It would seem we actually have a TV problem which, one could argue, leads to an obesity problem. We spend 2.8 hours a day watching TV! That category exceeds the other things we do by far and is more than a half of our leisure time. Last time I checked there wasn't much on TV worth 2.8 hours of daily viewing. 

If you are struggling with finding enough time to exercise, try this little idea. For the next 3 days, record how many minutes of TV you are watching. Take that number, divide it in half and commit to using that time to exercise each day. In other words, stop watching so much television! For added exercise points, combine exercise with your daily 38 minutes of socializing and communicating. Go for a walk with a friend or call your Mom during your daily stroll through the neighborhood (just watch where you are going... there are few things more obnoxious than someone talking on a cell phone and exhibiting bad pedestrian behavior). 

We know what we should do to take better care of ourselves. So, let's get doing! 

30 Days of Not

In a previous blog we talked about what you could accomplish in 30 days. Unlike other monthly projects, the idea of the 30 day numberless calendar is you can start at any point and will make progress if you merely commit to doing a task for 30 days in a row.

I think the idea is also valuable to use as 30 days of not. There are hundreds of examples:

• 30 days of not consuming sugar
• 30 days of not smoking
• 30 days of not watching TV

You get the idea... Mostly, we like the concept of using the 30 day numberless calendar to make small, steady steps toward a goal. After all, life is lived in each and every moment, one at at time.

30 Days

What could you do in 30 days? Google will say it only takes 21 days to develop a new habit. And this research says the number actually averages to 66 days. Have you ever noticed how there isn't really one answer to anything?

Anyway, we're in the 30 day progress conversation per yesterday's blog about tracking progress for the sake of progress instead of the end goal. Since that time I've begun making a list of the things I could track for 30 days. Drinking green tea each day, taking a walk with my dog each day, eating vegetarian for 30 days, doing yoga each day, strength training each day... the possibilities are endless.

So I've begun a few 30 day lists as we do some planning to incorporate the 30 day numberless calendar concept into Cybercise. One big 30 day project occurred to me this evening... eat only whole foods for 30 days. This would be just the opposite of what Morgan did in Super Size Me. This seems like a significant challenge, particularly with travel and lunch and dinner meetings. Is it possible? Perhaps. So I'm off to ponder my ability to eat nothing processed for 30 days. And you? What will you consider doing for 30 days?

Tracking Progress for the Sake of Progress

Yesterday we blogged about trusting the progress you can't yet see. Today, we're going to explore the idea of tracking progress for the sake of progress. As I've shared before, I'm working with a great group of people (none of whom I've met in person) on a little experiment called The First Follower.

On Sunday, Andrew 2 decided to seriously pursue Andrew 1's idea of the Numberless 30 Day Calendar. This is a fairly simple way to track your completion of a task for 30 days without regard to the days of the week or month. How many times have you waited to start an exercise program on the 1st of the month only to then forget, change your mind or be too busy to start anything new?

The Numberless 30 Day calendar, per Andrew 1, is a simple piece of paper with 30 boxes in which you place a check in each box as you complete your task for each of 30 days. Andrew 2 and his group of followers are feverishly discussing the idea and brainstorming on how to make this into a simple, clean and usable web application.

Cybercise? We love, love the idea! We do have a calendar feature on our website so people can plan their workout schedule by day, week and month. And, we think this feature to track progress would be a great addition.

Could we actually revolutionize people's motivation to exercise by giving them a simple tool to "just" check the box? We contend the most important thing is that you do a little exercise each day. Don't worry about what the mirror says just yet. Remember... trust the progress you can't yet see.

Steps

In yesterday's post, we discussed the difference between people who step and those who leap. If you aren't ready to leap into a new wellness program, here are a few steps you can take to edge yourself closer to the big leap.

Step 1: Add 3-5 glasses of water to your daily liquid intake
Step 2: Add a 10 minute walk before lunch each day
Step 3: Add 1 serving of vegetables to your daily diet
Step 4: Add a 5-minute meditation to each day
Step 5: Add a 5-minute strength program to each day
(Steps 4 and 5 can be done for free on Cybercise for 14 days)

Don't worry so much about giving anything up at this point. You can get more healthy and work your way to wellness by adding things to your life. And, let's face it, adding is often much more fun than subtracting!

Save Time with Better Results?

Good news for the millions and millions of people who say they don't have 2.5 hours to exercise every week? Some recent studies suggest working out more intensely but for less time is more effective. According to the article, "intense bursts of activity are what the body needs to build stronger muscles."

To echo the warnings required in our litigious society: Everyone should get a doctor's clearance before beginning any exercise program, particularly a high-intensity program.

The bottom line:

• Some exercise is better than none
• More exercise is better than less
• Variety (cardio, strength and flexibility/balance) is better than boring
• You will feel better, sleep better and be more happy

Now is the time. We have a weekend upon us... Get some exercise!

The Moment

Perhaps all of life comes down to the moment over and over again. Successful people act in the moment, others don't. What is the moment? How would you recognize it?

Here are some examples:

• Sunday morning, waking up and feeling rested - Do you get up and exercise or lounge around in bed watching TV?
• Weekday 3 PM, sitting at your desk and feeling tired - Do you go the vending machine for a soda or do some stretching at your desk?
• Weeknight, before dinner - Do you stop and get pizza on the way home or do you toss a salad and cook dinner?
• Weeknight, after dinner - Do you sit on the sofa and watch reality TV or take a walk with your spouse, kids, pet?

By and large, people that are healthy and fit use the moment to make the choice that best supports their health. Health doesn't come in one big dose. There isn't a pill to take and you're not going to wake up one day 20 pounds lighter. Health comes from making the "right" choice 80% of the time. The other 20%??? Have some fun and be aware you're doing it on purpose.

Health comes in the moment. Each and every one of them.

14-4-Fit

Are you thinking about joining our Fourteen for Fitness program? Starting Monday, February 15, we invite you to sign up for a free 14-day trial membership on Cybercise and join our 14-4-Fit! program.

14-4-Fit! is a great way to sample many of the Cybercise programs while enjoying a little friendly competition and encouragement from other 14-4-Fit! members.

If you're curious what is on the menu, here are the programs for the 14-day challenge:
Day 1: Total Body Stretch (10 M)
Day 2: Cardio Warm up (10 M)
Day 3: Arms I (5 M)
Day 4: Relax Breath I (5 M)
Day 5: Glute and Hamstring I (5 M)
Day 6: Chest I (5 M)
Day 7: Lunchtime Yoga (10 M)
Day 8: Chest I (5 M)
Day 9: Upper Leg I (5 M)
Day 10: Lower Body Stretch (10 M)
Day 11: Abs II (10 M)
Day 12: Lower Leg I (5 M)
Day 13: Back I (5 M)
Day 14: Bedtime Yoga (15 M)

When you join, set up your personal profile through our Community section and send a pal request to Jane Cybercise. We'll take it from there. Join us!

Fourteen for Fitness

We recently launched a free 14-day trial membership on our website. This trial is a full-featured look into Cybercise to give you a chance to try us out and see how easy it is to fit more fitness into your life.

By all reports, over 50% of people who began a New Year's Resolution this year to get more exercise have already stopped. We all know we want more exercise in our lives and sometimes it is hard to stay motivated. So, we're happy to introduce an easy-to-follow program called "Fourteen for Fitness." The Fourteen for Fitness challenge will begin on February 15, next Monday and will run through the end of the month (conveniently 14 days!).

Start by signing up for a free 14-day trial membership on Monday. Once you are signed up, set up your profile in our Community section and be sure to send a "pal" request to Jane Cybercise. Jane will send you a challenge that contains one of our video programs on each of the 14 days of your free trial. You and all of our other "Fourteen for Fitness" members will race against each other and the clock to exercise each day for 14 days.

We know you'll love our programs and enjoy working out with a little friendly competition. Plus, this will give you a great way to get a sampling of many of the video programs we have on Cybercise and, even better, it will get you started on a daily habit of exercise.

Join us! Tell your friends!

A Stretch in Time Saves Nine

One of the best things about being a member of Cybercise is the number of exercise videos we have that are 15 minutes and shorter. The whole idea behind this very purposeful (and brilliant!) approach was to help our members fit fitness into their lives.


Hello! *jumps up and down and waves at you* You don't need to spend an hour in the gym to improve your level of health. The CDC even says "10 minutes at a time is fine." If you are not working out because you don't have an hour in your day to stop what you're doing and go to the gym, try us.


During my travels this week, several people have asked me what a "typical" week of Cybercise could look like. I've put together the following schedule to give you an idea of the how easy it is to get all of your exercise (and more) into your week. And, as a member of Cybercise, we even give you a handy calendar feature so you can plan your workouts in by week to be sure you're covering all the bases.


Here goes:
Monday -
AM - Morning Yoga (10 m)
Noon - Upper Body I (15 m)
After work - Abs I (10 m)
Bedtime - Upper Body Stretch (10 m)

Tuesday -
AM - Total Body Stretch (15 m)
Noon - Walk (10 m)
After work - Lower Body I (15 m)
Bedtime - Lower Body Stretch (10 m)

Wednesday -
AM - Morning Yoga (10 m)
Noon - Arms I (5 m) and Chest I (5 m)
After work - Abs I (10 m)
Bedtime - Upper Body Stretch (10 m)

Thursday -
AM - Total Body Stretch (15 m)
Noon - Walk (10 m)
After work - Glutes and Hams I (5 m)
Bedtime - Lower Body Stretch (10 m)

Friday -
AM - Morning Yoga (10 m)
Noon - Arms I (5 m) and Back I (5 m)
After work - Abs I (10 m)
Bedtime - Upper Body Stretch (10 m)

Saturday -
REST

Sunday -
AM - Total Body Stretch (15 m)
Noon - Walk (10 m)
Bedtime - Bedtime Yoga (15 m)

There you go! When you follow this schedule, believe it or not , you'll have done some kind of exercise for a total of 270 minutes! Awesome, well done! *roars from the crowd* Notice, I included walking which you would do outside of Cybercise. You can add walking (and all other non-Cybercise activities) into your workout calendar on our site.

The idea is to show you how much flexibility you have as a member. If you know one day of your week will be particularly busy (say a PTA meeting at school on Wednesday night), simply schedule that day as your rest day or schedule a 10 minute stretch routine. If you want more heart pumping exercise schedule more cardio and reduce the schedule of strength training.

To make this all possible, you simply have sign on to Cybercise and follow along with the videos. You don't have to think, plan, ponder, consider, worry or fret. I challenge you to follow this schedule for 2 weeks. Two tiny small weeks out of your fabulous life. At the end of those two weeks, you'll feel better.

Join us. Let's get to health together a few moments as a time.
You can do it.
We're here for you.